I'm pretty convinced that I'll be the last person to see Swing Vote—not because everyone else has seen it already, but because it looks like its run in the theater will be pretty short-lived. But my wife wants to see it, and we don't get out much anymore; so I might as well check it out, right?

The thing is, no matter how terrible the movie is, or at least how it's perceived by others, I've been a fan. In 1985, Costner kicks it off with Silverado (which is one of my favorite Westerns of all time) before The Untouchables, leads into a stretch of Bull Durham, Field of Dreams, and Dances of Wolves—which I think are pretty wildly appreciated. But then you have Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, which is a personal favorite of mine, even if RH has an American accent.

You love or hate JFK. You sing along or tune out The Bodyguard. A Perfect World was the strangest role to date, until Mr. Brooks came along (and one of the few I didn't like). Costner is dealing with the struggle of human experience, even if they're not blockbusters in Wyatt Earp, The War and Waterworld. What's not to like about Waterworld? Yes, another film that "stinks," but I can watch it and appreciate it.

Costner goes back and forth between his sports loves (Tin Cup) and save-the-world moments (The Postman). He diversified with 3000 Miles To Graceland and Dragonfly, and joined Robert Duvall in his third-best western, Open Range. The Guardian tugged on my emotional heartstrings in ways that The Upside of Anger and Rumor Has It couldn't, but the man is on a good run!

So what's wrong with Swing Vote? Are people sick of dealing with elections and voting, politicking and hobnobbing? It seems that the premise of Swing Vote is pretty key to the Christian ideal: my voice matters, my decisions matter, my life affects the outcome of everyone else's happiness and wellbeing.

Swing Vote calls us to believe that we should care, regardless of how small we might be or how out-of-the-race our life seems to leave us. We matter and our choices matter. What would it look like if a carpenter's son had decided over two thousand years ago that his decisions couldn't make a difference? Two thousand years later, my life would be significantly different, significantly worse.

So I'm going to go see Swing Vote, and see what the lack of fuss is all about. And I just might end up being surprised again by a Costner stinkfest that doesn't stink—and my congregation just might end up with a sermon illustration because of it.